1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to systems and methods that are used to manage networks that are addressed with common network addresses.
2. Description of the Related Art
With the increase in popularity of the Internet, the widespread deployment of intranets, and the growing use of Internet protocol (IP) based network technologies, many corporations and enterprises have established private networks which have become difficult and costly to manage effectively. Often, such private networks require deployment of large resource pools to service user populations, work forces that are highly skilled in resource management operations, and extensive physical facilities. As such, many enterprises have elected to outsource the management of their networks to third-party service providers. Although outsourcing has enabled enterprises to efficiently and effectively manage their private networks, service providers now face significant problems in managing such networks on behalf of their customers. For example, service providers now face having to manage two or more networks which may use common network addresses for internal network addressing and processing.
The problems associated with managing networks which are addressed by common network addresses are compounded when enterprises use IP technologies. For example, it is well known that there are not enough publicly addressable IP addresses to serve the needs of all who seek to utilize IP technologies. Accordingly, enterprises often must use network addresses in ranges that are approved by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) in standard RFC 1918. The RFC 1918 standard provides the following network address ranges for private IP-based networks:
10.0.0.0 to 10.255.255.255 PA1 172.16.0.0 to 172.31.255.255 PA1 192.168.0.0 to 192.168.255.255
Although the above-listed network address ranges have allowed enterprises to adopt corresponding address blocks for internal use, it remains possible for two enterprises to select, adopt, and use one or more of the same network address. Since such a situation would result in two or more enterprises being addressable via a common IP address, service providers face a serious challenge in servicing more than one enterprise. In particular, service providers face deployment of separate resource farms (e.g., separate routers, computing systems, peripherals, etc.) if they desire to service two or more customers with common IP addresses. The costs associated with deploying such resources can outweigh the profits realized from managing a network on behalf of a customer. Such problems can lead to lost sales for service providers and a lack of network management options for enterprises who seek reliable network management services without being required to re-map or re-address their resources.
Thus, there exists a need to provide systems and methods for managing networks which may be addressed with commonly selected network addresses. To be viable such systems and methods must be capable of mapping otherwise common or duplicated network addresses into unique addresses which a management system may use in routing and processing corresponding network packets and data on behalf of a customer.